Report: Demarcus Lawrence makes history with new big contract

According to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence has agreed to a new three-year deal, with $30 million guaranteed. With that, Lawrence has made a bit of history, becoming the first defensive end in the NFL to ever have seven consecutive seasons of fully guaranteed contract money.

“Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence has just become the first defensive end in NFL history to have seven straight seasons of his contract fully guaranteed: He’s agreed to a new three-year deal with $30 million fully guaranteed and is staying in Dallas,” Pelissero said via Twitter.

Jon Machota of The Athletic provided more details on the contract, saying the full deal is worth $40 million.

Lawerence has been one of the players Dallas could potentially move on from this offseason fix their salary cap issues. Instead, he will be anchoring the defensive line for at least the next three years and be doing so with a nice guaranteed payday.

While most defensive ends get paid to rush the passer, Lawrence has flashed enough to justify the Cowboys continually heavily investing in him. Lawrence has 74 career tackles for a loss and 100 quarterback hits, according to Sports Reference. Add on his 321 tackles, 17 forced fumbles, and six fumble recoveries and Lawrence is among one of the league’s best throughout his career.

Lawrence was a second-round pick coming out of Boise State in 2014, being the No. 36 overall pick in the draft. He has been one of the mainstays on the Dallas defense ever since, playing in 103 games and starting in 85. The sacks have not always been eye-popping for Lawrence, only having double-digit sacks in two seasons, but he has been a huge success in the run game.

Injuries have rarely plagued Lawrence but did so this year. He only played in seven games, missing the heart of the season after suffering a foot injury in the season opener. Before then, the defensive end had played three straight full seasons, starting in all but one game.

Next up for Dallas will be figuring out if Lawrence’s defensive end partner, Randy Gregory, will be returning for the 2022 season. Being a free agent for the first time in his career, Gregory was not franchise tagged by the Cowboys. That honor went to tight end Dalton Schultz.

Gregory could draw interest from numerous teams after having a breakout season. If Dallas wants to keep the defensive progress up, signing Gregory to an extension after the Lawrence move should be next up on the docket.